Paleoclimatology

The Hill Biogeochemistry Lab at BML aims to understand climate change in the past and present ocean, spanning geologic (past 1 million years) to human timescales (past 100 years, and future). We are interested in large-scale ocean processes (e.g., circulation changes) down to bays, estuaries, and coastal environments.

Rising CO₂ is changing the chemistry, temperature, and currents of our oceans—shifts that ripple through marine ecosystems. Along California’s coast, researchers at the Coastal and Marine Sciences Institute study how naturally upwelled, acidified waters offer a window into future ocean conditions. With ocean buoys, moored sensors, and ship-based surveys, they monitor and model how climate-driven changes in acidification and upwelling affect marine life and coastal ecosystems.